We have created the ultimate washing tool, read below on our reasons for making it and just how it can give you the best and safest wash possible.
Serina and Casey will be showing us how they use their Muffy's.
WHY MUFFY?
A lot of people out in "car world" have always said to me that they love using sponges and find hand washing mitt’s a pain.. A lot have told me the opposite as well! I personally preferred sponges, until I found out how much damage they can do to your cars paint. As sponges have no give in them, they push dirt and other contaminants into your paint as you try to clean it, creating most of the fine scratches and swirls you see on cars today. To make it worse, a lot of this dirt gets stuck in the sponge material and continually scratches away every time it is used.. For those reasons alone, I ditched the sponge and we made our Love Glove wash mitt. The material in the Love Glove is perfect for car washing; soft enough to not mark your car, protecting it from the dirt being pushed into the paint and thus scratching it. Also super effective cleaning power with the short pile weave that will release all the dirt particles when rinsed in the bucket, drifting harmlessly into the bottom of your bucket. Absolutely Perfect!
But I still had in my head how much I loved using the old the sponges. It was around this time of making the Love Glove that I was sitting around thinking about car care (as we do) and the thought of creating a sponge totally covered in the material the love glove is made of. It should be perfect, so I had a sample made and was upset when it proved that it was not the answer. After using it I realise it was far from a good washing tool- It filled with water and was super heavy to wash with, would not retain its shape and the suds could not get out of the sponge as they were trapped inside the layer of microfibre around it, effectively damming them inside. It went in the bin, but I never lost my wish to try something.
Finally on a great day last year we worked out a new answer to this problem. By applying the Love Glove material to the top and bottom surfaces of the sponge and keep the sides free. Finally after many failed attempts we found a way to attach the material, while not affecting the sponge and most importantly not de-laminating away from the sponge surface. And our new special sponge was born, which we affectionately gave the name of “Muffy”.
Some of Muffy's best features.
Muffy is the perfect wash accessory with its premium construction, as it provides the best of worlds; a non damaging and effective washing surface like a mitt and all the sudsing and large cleaning surface area of a sponge. Like the mitt, the material will not harbour the dirt and grime as you wash away, we even made it in a bright yellow colour so you can see any dirt or other particles in it and wash them out before they could create damage! Look closely at the weave base and you will see that it is a very special one, with the microfibre strands only coming out of every 3rd hole on the surface which we have found to be the best way to ensure it can release the dirt particles effectively. Whilst still having enough fibre hair to give a great, safe wash.
USING MUFFY
First off, we have already written a big in depth story on washing your car, mainly with the love glove mitt, but there is a lot of useful things in there, with the whole process from washing, hoses, to chamoising your car dry. Check it out here.
But for getting the most out of Muffy, continue reading!
Lots of Suds and Safe washing, that's the Muffy difference.
FIRST TIME CARE
Before the first time use, give Muffy a quick rinse out in a bucket of clean water, just to clean off any fibres from when she was made, do not worry, she will not moult and the chance of her ever being bald from overuse is virtually impossible.
Try and wash in a undercover or shaded area (on grass is nice too), rinse the car down well with a hose try and remove as much dirt as possible, especially on the lower areas of the car.
Muffy loves to be used with the Auto Body Gel, its lubricating and dense sudsing formula is ideal for the way she works. Get BOB (Bowden’s Own 12 litre Bucket) on the ground and fill using reasonable water pressure . At about ½ full add a capful of the Auto Body Gel wash and then once full of suds, immerse Muffy in the bucket and squeeze her well, Muffy is a big drinker, so you will amazed by how much she can absorb, which means you can wash a lot further than any Mitt ever could! Pull her out of the bucket, (your technique here is important), making sure not to squeeze her at all between the bucket and car and begin the washing.
Look closely, that's the perfect amount of suds in this bucket
Always start at the top of the car and making your way to the bottom, dirtier parts of the vehicle last, being sure to wash a section at a time and rinse down with a gentle stream of water from a hose, or bucket to eliminate any chance of streaking. As you wash the panel surface just squeeze Muffy’s waist lightly to release the suds. do half the area with one side of Muffy, then turn over and finish using the other back and cleaner part of Muffy, this just allows for the safest wash possible. Head back to the bucket and begin again.
KEEP IT CLEAN
Rinse Muffy out often as she does not like being dirty! It’s as easy as dunking in the wash water and shaking it in the water to open the fibres, releasing anything from in them. If it is real dirty, inspect the fibres closely while in the bucket, and wash clean by agitating Muffy with your hand if to release the dirt out of fibre. If you drop Muffy, be militant in your inspection of the fibres for anything in them, pull them out and keep her clean! Doing these things will practically eliminate the chance of getting any scratches and swirls in your paint.
Squeeze Muffy to release more suds.
For the best safety in the dirtier areas, squeeze Muffy to release a little bit more suds than you would say whilst washing the roof. These extra suds will create more of a barrier to help encapsulate any dirt particles and again greatly minimise the chance of it scratching your paint.
If the car is really dirty, you may wish to use our two bucket method: You get two 12 litre buckets; one is ¾ full of water with car wash mixed in, the other is ¾ full of pure water (If possible, use two different colour buckets so you do not mix them up later in the wash) Start washing the car in the prescribed manner above. Once you have finished a panel, submerge Muffy into the pure water bucket and rinse it by shaking it vigorously, before placing it back into the wash bucket. Gather as much water and suds as Muffy can carry, then reapply to the next panel. Repeat this process, washing every panel on the car.
Do not use Muffy to clean the wheels on your car, as there is lots of nasty gear on them that should not get near Muffy. Get our red wheel cloth for that job!
Not calling Muffy fat, but there are some tighter parts, mainly on the older cars that Muffy cannot always get into clean effectively. Areas like the grill, around chrome bumpers, lights etc. For these tighter areas, I find it can be best to use the Love Glove wash mitt .
Sometimes one Muffy is just not enough, the girls demonstrate the double Muffy technique.
MUFFY LOVE
At the end of the wash, rinse Muffy out with fresh water in a bucket and then squeeze her out and let her air dry. She loves to live in the wash bucket, in a clean part of your garage, so she is ready for the next use!
From time to time we know you may get some grease or grime that is a bit hard to get rid of from Muffy’s fibres. To clean, firstly hand wash her, with a liberal "dob" of the undiluted Auto Body Gel wash and water, massaging it into the area affected on the sponge. If that does not work, or if your lazy, give Muffy to the machine wash on the warm cycle with normal clothes washing detergent. Never use bleach or fabric softener as it will kill Muffy. Always let her air dry.
The girls have done a great wash with Muffy , just need to rinse the car now!
Read about rinsing and more in our full car wash article by clicking here
GET YOUR MUFFY
Our entire team have all loved using it here for our own cars and know you will love and enjoy using it just as much. It is available at all our supporting AutObarn and other independent stores here , or via our website page right here.
Love your Muffy,
Dan
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